Chapter 1767 - The First Date (1)

~ Los Angeles ~

Saturday

5:00 PM

Gabriel arrived in front of a massive entry door of the villa where Penny and Ben live. He is here to pick up Becca for their date.

He is dressed up in dark jeans pants and a crisp white shirt. It's not formal, but not too casual either. He will not admit that he spent more than an hour deciding what to wear. It seems like forever when he went out on a date if he does not count functions related to the Long family or the Long industries.

Gabriel extended his hand with an intention to ring the doorbell, but at the last moment, he stopped to check his breath and to make sure that the bouquet of flowers is just right.

'I can't believe that I'm nervous. It will be fine…', he gave himself a pep talk. 'This is a mix of seasonal flowers. Roses are too romantic, and I don't want to put pressure on Becca because even I'm not sure what to expect from this.'

Gabriel was contemplating to come empty-handed, but then he decided on flowers in case Ben sees him.

Three days ago, Gabriel enjoyed talking with Becca in the garden and she managed to cheer him up and he got carried away by the moment. Now that he cooled down and he had time to think, Gabriel is doubting if this is a good idea.

'If I didn't rush into this date stupidity, I could have found some other way to talk to Becca, and now everything points to the possibility that I am romantically interested in the girl. Am I interested? I don't know, and that is the problem. I should have sorted that thing out before setting up a date situation… but I can't back off now. It would be inappropriate.'

'Am I really going to court an eighteen years old girl? I must be crazy…' He shook his head in disbelief before ringing the doorbell.

'In the worst case, I will spend an evening with Becca, find out that in those few minutes we talked previously I was muddleheaded and she is nothing special, and I will never see her again. Those things happen, not many go on a second date. If she asks why I'm not calling her, I will say that I'm busy with work and in time she will forget about me…', Gabriel already started coming up with excuses. It's a habit he developed over the years, to have several exit strategies ready.

The door opened and Gabriel paused at the sight of Becca. He looked at her from her cream-colored flats to the light knee-length summer dress and her chestnut hair freely falling over her shoulders in light waves. He noticed a hint of makeup on her lips he was not sure if that is lipstick or lip-gloss, but her smile was so sweet that she looked edible. Increasing her cuteness factor was her nervously gripping a small purse.

Gabriel regretted bringing only a modest bouquet of flowers. And for some reason, he wished for a big glass dome, to put over Becca, and to preserve her. His next thought was to take her photo so that he can admire her later, but that would be awkward.

Gabriel swallowed hard and struggled to find the words while hoping that his poker face didn't crack and that she can't notice his heart beating so violently that he is on the verge of fainting. Why is he acting like a love-stricken teenager? This will be harder than he thought.

"Uhm… hi Becca… these are for you."

Becca accepted the flowers and blushed. "Thanks. They are lovely."

'Damnit! It should have been bigger. And roses…', Gabriel thought.

Becca fidgeted for a second, unsure what to do next. Should she take the flowers with her, or leave them at home? Is it OK to keep them on the side-table in the hallway, or should she put them in the water? Should she invite Gabriel inside? That would be a disaster, considering that Ben is on the verge of exploding.

Before Becca could decide what to do, a hand appeared from the side.

"Give them here…", Penny whispered with urgency and when she realized her blunder, it was too late.

Penny peeked from the side of the door and giggled. "Hi, Gabriel. I'm here to… take over the flowers so that the two of you can go on your date."

Gabriel was not sure what to say to Penny's clumsy lie. What if he didn't bring flowers? It's obvious that Penny was spying on them. He decided to play along. "Hi, Penny. Thank you. I will bring Becca back by 10."

Penny nodded in approval. "If you stay until 11, that is fine."

"He said 10!", Ben roared from inside.

Gabriel paused for a moment, and then he remembered that Ben is in charge of security at the White corp. and that he is probably being watched since he stepped onto the property. Did Ben see him check his breath? Probably. How embarrassing.

"Gabbey!", Oliver screamed before slamming himself on Gabriel's leg.

"Hey, little B…", Gabriel called while squatting and patting Oliver's head. "I didn't see you a few days and you are this much taller…" Gabriel gestured with his thumb and index finger as much as they stretched.

Oliver grinned. He wants to grow up fast so that he can do grownup stuff and also, among the 'older kids' (aka Lia, Alice, and Jayden), Oliver is the shortest one.

Penny gave Becca a cardigan and spoke to Oliver. "Your sissy and Gabriel have things to do. Can you help me put these flowers in a vase?"

Oliver looked at Penny suspiciously. "Aye they for me?"

"They are for your sissy."

Oliver was not happy with this response. "I want flowevs also."

"Next time, I will get some for you as well.", Gabriel said without thinking and he didn't notice that Becca blushed at his words.

Gabriel chuckled seeing Oliver's happy grin. Any anxiousness Gabriel had, disappeared with Oliver's appearance. The little guy with chubby cheeks has the power of brightening up everyone's day and he made Gabriel's mind change from thinking about how this is a disaster into a 'there will be the next time'.

"Eleven is fine…", Penny mouthed at Gabriel and winked before closing the door.

"Sorry about that.", Becca said awkwardly. "Shal we go?"

Gabriel stood up and straightened his back while towering over Becca. He was taller than she is, even though the step Becca was standing on gave her a boost.

Gabriel smiled and gestured toward his silver Bentley Continental GT.

Becca circled around the convertible and whistled loudly before getting in. "You have a hell of a job or a massive inheritance."

"Actually, I have both.", Gabriel said smugly and closed the door for Becca before making his way to the driver's side.

Becca made a face. "Show off…"

Becca knows that Gabriel works for Steve, but she never asked for more than that because, for her, it does not matter. Gabriel is handsome and he treats her well. Actually, she was swayed by his compliments when she taught Oliver the alphabet.

An eighteen years old girl does not need much to develop a crush, and Gabriel is crushable.

"Where are we going?", Becca asked when Gabriel started the car.

"You said that anything is fine, so I decided to do a few things I always wanted to do… It might be selfish, but if you don't like it, let me know. OK?"

Gabriel didn't want to say that for the last decade he did things others expected him to do: Victoria, his parents, his family, and even Steve. Gabriel is so used to following orders and plans someone else created, that he had difficulty coming up with what to do for the next few hours. It was liberating and agonizing at the same time.

Gabriel thought that if Becca says that she does not like it at any point, he will bring her back home early. He was mentally prepared that this will be a total failure, anything more than that will be considered a success.

"You have a problem with that?", Gabriel asked when he saw that Becca is observing him silently. 'This might be the shortest date in the history of mankind…'

Becca blinked. "You still didn't tell me where we are going."

"First, we are going for a ride, then for a dinner, and the last will be a movie. And I will bring you back here by 10."

'Eleven is fine...', Becca shrugged while trying to hide her excitement. "Sounds good…"

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